Cheap cement to pave roads

To meet the demand for cheap and steady supply of cement for building concrete roads and other infrastructure in the country, the Government has brought big cement manufacturers under a common e-commerce marketplace. So far, 36 cement manufactures have assured supplies of 95 lakh tonnes at almost 50 per cent of the market rates for road building in the country under an annual contract. They have signed up on web-portal INAM-PRO, a platform for infrastructure and material providers.

“Thirty six cement manufacturers have committed to supplying 95 lakh tonnes through their 103 plants pan India at prices between `120- 180 a bag against a market price of `300- 360, a bag. This would boost road building and result in huge savings of crores of rupees,” said Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Road, Transport and Highways. Through an order issued in August 2014, the Ministry for Road, Transport and Highways had decided to build concrete cement roads in place of traditional bitumen roads. 

“Cement roads are cost-effective and require less maintenance. But a day after the announcement, the cement makers pushed up their prices significantly. This on-line platform will bring in transparency, encourage competition and end cartelisation,” said Gadkari.

“The use of indigenously manufactured cement will give a push to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ vision as we will no longer need to import bitumen, which is more expensive and also requires regular maintenance,” he said. Gadkari said that the portal would allow both Central and State Government agencies to register and procure cement directly from suppliers on “cash and carry basis.” He said the method for making available cement through the portal was transparent and left no scope for corruption.